Health impact assessment of the Northern Territory Emergency Response

• Australian Indigenous Doctors' Association

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18 March 2010This report raises serious concerns about the continued future wellbeing of Indigenous children and families under the Northern Territory Intervention. The report assesses the potential health impacts of the Intervention on all aspects of Indigenous health and wellbeing, not just physical health.

Using methodology endorsed by the World Health Organisation, the report found that the Intervention would potentially lead to ‘profound’ long-term damage, and that any potential benefits to physical health were largely outweighed by negative impacts to psychological health, social health and wellbeing as well as cultural integrity.

The report also found that the increasing levels of mistrust caused by the previous government’s ill-conceived and rushed implementation of the Intervention will continue to compromise the current government’s ability to work in partnership with Aboriginal communities to achieve shared objectives.

This assessment was conducted in collaboration with the University of New South Wales’ Centre for Health Equity Training, Research and Evaluation.